Amazon.com reviews for
Babes in Arms (1939) More at IMDbPro »

Babes in Arms (vhs):

Amazon.com Essentials: This quintessential Mickey Rooney-Judy Garland musical has all the kinetic energy and beaming goofiness that made their films together (nine in all) so popular--and so easy to lampoon. The son of a vaudeville performer (Charles Winninger), Rooney decides to put on his own show (in a barn!) to save his family's fortune, his town, his peers, and, gosh darn it, even the American way of life. The star luster generated by Garland matches the explosive energy of Rooney's performance. Director Busby Berkeley's big production numbers are a sight to behold, from a march through town for the title number to an embarrassingly dated minstrel show routine. The movie was made the same year as The Wizard of Oz (1939) and featured the same villain: Margaret Hamilton. How popular was Rooney at the time? The number one box-office attraction was nominated for best actor at age 19 in that landmark year against some of the most famous performances of all time: Laurence Olivier in Wuthering Heights, Clark Gable in Gone with the Wind, James Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and winner Robert Donat in Goodbye, Mr. Chips. --Doug Thomas